Last month, Lighthouse Friends and their guests were invited to an exclusive watch-along as James Wilton Dance warmed up for their performance of Bach Reimagined in the Theatre. They saw a tech rehearsal with dancers James Wilton and Sarah Taylor preparing for the performance as musician Raphael Weinroth Browne tuned his electric cello.
Here, Lighthouse Friends and Individual Giving Executive, Jonathan Smith, shares some thoughts on this unique opportunity…
All of our 600+ fantastic Friends members were recently invited to a members only behind the scenes watch-along of the warm-up of James Wilton Dance, before their explosive performance of Bach Reimagined in the evening.
They had the chance to watch these world class dancers, renowned for their athleticism and grace, combining the fluidity of ballet with the dynamism of contemporary dance, preparing in their warm-up and technical rehearsals, and to see the musician Raphael tuning and adjusting the sound quality of his cello.
The dancers were amazing and what an insight to hear the very different sound the electric cello made, with the loop pedals, percussion and echo. To hear Raphael fine-tuning the sound to get the perfect quality he wanted was very special.
It was a privilege to watch the dancers go through their warm-up process, to see how they both had a slightly different routine and also how they intuitively seemed to know the bits that they did together. To be able to see the athleticism with their spins, cartwheels and handstands, as they gradually moved into the more dynamic movements, and then to have chance to watch some of their preparations in the tech rehearsal was simple amazing!
A huge thanks to James Wilton, Sarah Taylor and Raphael Weinroth Browne for giving us this unique peek into their world.
Jonathan Smith
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